Serving the Barrie and surrounding area for over three generations and counting
Bill LeBoeuf Jewellers takes great pride in providing our customers with a premium customer service experience and Barrie’s finest selection of watches, diamond and gemstone settings, including jewellery in platinum, white and yellow gold. Our in house custom jewellery designs range from engagement rings and wedding rings to diamond pendants and earrings. In addition, we are continuously updating our estate jewellery collection which includes watches by Rolex, Tag Heuer, Cartier and Breitling as well as many other premium brands.
Our on-site gemologist and goldsmith designers are highly knowledgeable and are available to share their years of experience with you. They will answer any questions you have about your existing piece or will assist you in finding or designing that unique gift.
Let us earn your trust. We have been doing that with our customers from the Barrie and surrounding area for the past 60 years and with the recent expansion of our on-line offerings, we are excited to be building customer loyalty all over Canada and the United States.
Latest Vintage Piece
1954 Omega Century 17-jewel, hand wind, 33.4mm, gold filled case. $1,300.00 CAD. 510-00200
The Omega Century is an uncommon watch that was only sold in Canada. It is very topical today as this watch only exists due to U.S. tariffs that were imposed on imported Swiss watches. During the 1950 the U.S. government imposed significant tariffs on imported Swiss watches in the hopes of protecting the failing domestic watch manufacturing industry. The 10 karat gold filled case of this watch was manufactured by The Star Watch Case Company of Michigan.
The tariffs applied mainly to completed watches from Switzerland, so assembling a watch using an American made case eliminated that extra cost. We Canadians have always been a frugal bunch and the Omega Century was the perfect product for us.
It looked like a high end, solid gold, completely Swiss made Omega chronometer but was priced at a fraction of that. In the 1950s these watches only cost around $100.00. The in-house designed and manufactured 17 jewell mechanism is a beautiful example of Swiss watchmaking excellence. It is not terribly complicated but showcases excellent finish details with lovely bevelled plates finished in rose gold.
The tiny poising screws on the rim of the balance wheel within these shock protected workhorse movements were all adjusted by hand until the wheel was perfectly balanced. Although the 17 jewell calibre 266 wasn’t subjected to independent timing certification, these robust movements often run close to chronometer levels of accuracy. They run at a leisurely 18,000 cycles per hour results in a long (for the era) 42 hour power reserve. The genuine signed Omega crown looks like new and is a nice touch.
Our Century dates from around 1954 according to the 14,615,898 serial number. The crosshairs silver dial is in very good original condition showing minor patina on the righthand edge. The gold filled case is also in very good condition for a watch that is 70 years old. The gold cap finish only shows wear on the bottom outside tips.
Many examples of this model have significant wear on the lugs exposing the base metal core. The watch is running great and keeping time. We are happy to provide the next owner of this little piece of Canadian/Omega history with a complimentary 1 year warranty. Estate priced at $1,300.00 CAD. Stock #510-00200.
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Estate Pieces Wanted
We are always looking to buy your estate pieces including brands such as Rolex, Cartier, Breitling, Tag Heuer, along with gold and diamond jewellery.
view our current estate collection
GIA Four Cs of Diamonds
Learn more about the 4 Cs of diamond grading with this interactive tool and video explanation. You’ll soon understand how diamond quality is evaluated.
